Valve mechanism for internal-combustion engines.



H. L. DOERING.

VALVE MECHANISM FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.26, 1913.

1 1|. Q Q 5$UI I Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

Witnesses:

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HENRY L. DOERING, OF ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR T0 GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 29 1916.

Application filed March 26, 1913. Serial No. 756,849.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that T, HENRY L. DOERING, a'citizen of the United States, residing at Erie, in the county of Erie, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Valve Mechanism for Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

In the operation of certain types of internal combustion engines it is customary blast air for injecting the fuel into the cylinders, is driven by the main crank-shaft of the engine, it follows that as the engine speed is decreased the air supply is also diminished; and where the time of the fuel valve opening bears a fixed relation to the crank revolution, under low speed, the time that the fuel valve remains open will be correspondingly increased so that more blast air is admitted to the cylinders than under higher speeds; and since the air compressor cannot supply this greater demand, the pressure of the air will drop lower and lower in the receiver until it can no longer force the fuel into the cylinders, when the engine will stop. I avoid this objection by providing a means by which the time of closing of the fuel or needle valve can be advanced or retarded to suit the requirements. This means may be and usually would be controlled manually but it may be controlled automatically by a suitable form of speed governor.

For a consideration of what I believe to be novel and my invention, attention is directed to the accompanying description. and claims appended thereto.

Tn the accompanying drawing which is illustrative of one of the embodiments of my invention, Figure 1 is a partial view in side elevation of an engine; Fig. 2 is an enlarged detailed view of the mechanism for actuating the fuel valve; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the cam and eccentric for adjusting it; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the cam and its associated parts; and Fig. 5 is an end view of the lever arm and cam.

6 indicates the cylinder of an internal combustion engine operating on the high compression plan. It is provided with oppositely moving pistons mounted in the same cylinder. The lower piston is connected to the main shaft 7 by connecting rod 8 and crank 9. The upper piston is connected to the shaft by the side rods 10, of which one is shown, and the crank 11.

12 indicates an arm which is pivotally supported at one end on the cylnder or other suitable part, and 13 an arm that is pivotally connected to the side rod'lO by the pivot 14. The two arms are united by the pivot 15. The arm 13 is extended and carries the roller 16 at its outer end. As the engine operates, the pivot 14 follows an elliptical path as indicated by the broken-and-dotted line 17. Roller 16 has an orbital path of movement as indicated by the broken-anddotted line 18. It will be noted that the roller at the time it-engages the valve operating parts is moving in a substantially straight line thereby insuring accuracy of opening and closing of the valve actuated thereby. Also that the engagement always takes place at the same portion of the stroke of the piston. 1

Situated at one side of the cylinder and extending into the combustion space between the pistons is a fuel injector 19 of any suitable construction. It is provided with a needle valve 20, which, when it opens, permits fuel .to be injected into the cylinder by compressed air or bythe elastic fluid. This valve is normally held on its seat by a spring 20. Fuel is admitted to the injector through a passage in the part 21, and compressed air or other elastic fluid through a port in the part 22. The valve is opened against the action of the closing spring 20 by a bell-crank lever comprising the arms 23 and 24. These arms are rigidly secured to the rock-shaft or pivot 25 so that as the actuator raises the arm 2& the valve will be opened. For convenience the arms 23 and 24 are offset and are connected by the shaft or pivot 25, the latter being supported in a bearing 26 carried by a bracket or other support attached to some part of the engine.

5, 28. The under side of the arm 24 is slotted to receive the cam 29, which cam is adjustable longitudinally in the slot. The cam is held in its proper position in engagement with the arm by the coiled extension spring 80. It is adjusted by the following means:

Mounted on the rock-shaft is an eccentric 31 which is surrounded by an eccentric strap 31 that has an .arm 32, the lower end of which is pivotally connected to a projection formed on the upper side of the cam.

In order to turn the eccentric, a handle 33 is provided which is secured to the eccentric 31 so that as it is swung to and fro the cam 29 will be adjusted longitudinally 1n the arm 24. The handle 33 is provided with a latch of any suitable construction that engages the teeth on the sector 34 to lock' the parts in place.

The parts are so constructed and arranged that each time the roller 16 passes over its orbital path, as indicated by the brokenand-dotted line 18, it will raise the arm 24 at the same fixed point regardless of the position of the movable cam, and move the arm 23 to the left and open the valve. As soon as the roller passes out of engagement with the arm and cam 29, the valve 20 closes due to the action of the closing spring 20. In order to vary the period of closing of the valve with respect to the angular movements of the main shaft, the cam 29 is moved to the right or left, as occasion requires, by turning the eccentric. Moving the cam to the right has the effect of permitting the M) gvalve to close earlier, and moving it to the left causes the valve to close later. It is to be noted that the arm 24 is provided with a small cam projection 35, which is sufficient to cause the valve to open once for every 5 .trevolution of the main shaft under minimum load conditions. In eflect the adjustment of the cam 29 is to prolong the cam projection 35. The prolongation is indicated by the reference character 36. It will thus be "seen that by adjusting the cam, valve 20 can be held open for a longer or shorter portion of the angular movement of the main shaft, thereby varying the amount of blast air which is injected into the cylinder with the fuel. That is to say, instead of having a constant amount of blast air admitted to the cylinder for all speed conditions, by changing the position of the cam 29, I can decrease the amount of air admitted as the speed of so the engine decreases, thereby effecting a substantial saving because a good deal of work is required to compress air to the pressures necessary for this class of work.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I have described the principle of operation of my invention, together with the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof; but I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown is only illustrative, and that the invention can be carried out by other means.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of motive fluid thereto, a lever for operating the valve, said lever having a fixed pivot and a cam surface, an actuator which engages the cam surface for moving the lever to operate the valve, and means for varying the cam surface to vary the action of the actuator on the lever.

2. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of motive fluid there to, a valve actuator, a lever having an end which is raised by the actuator once for each complete movement thereof, a cam that is carried by the lever and is engaged by the actuator to move the lever to actuate the valve, and means for moving the cam in a manner to increase or decrease the period of engagement of the actuator and the cam.

3. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an actuator which has an orbital path of movement, a lever that projects into said path and actuates the valve, a cam carried by the lever which is engaged by the actuator, and means for sliding the cam to and fro on the lever to increase or decrease the period that the actuator and lever are in engagement.

4. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an actuator which has an orbital path of movement, a lever that projects into said path and actuates the valve, a sliding cam carried by the lever which is engaged by the actuator, an eccentric for moving the cam on the lever, and means for turning the eccentric.

5. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an actuator which has an orbital path of movement, a bell-crank lever moved by the actuator one arm of which operates the valve, the other projecting in said orbital path, a rock-shaft that supports the lever, a sliding cam carried by one arm of the lever, an eccentric mounted on the rock-shaft and connected to the cam, and means for turning the eccentric.

6. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an actuator which is moved by the engine, a rock-shaft, a support carried by the shaft, a bell-crank lever, one arm of which is secured to the shaft and the other to said support and projects into the path of movement of the actuator, a cam carried by the arm that is engaged by the actuator, and means bell-crank lever having one arm Which operates the valve and a second arm Which engages the actuator and is slotted on its under side, a cam mounted in the slot and movable longitudinally therein, means for holding the cam in the slot, and a means that is normally held in fixed position for adjusting the cam.

8. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an actuator driven by the engine that has an orbital movement, the active portion of which is substantially straight, a lever for operating the valve, one end of Which projects into the straight portion of said orbital path, a cam carried by said end of the lever, and means for moving the cam to cause the actuator to hold the valve open for a greater or less angular movement of the engine shaft.

9. In combination, an engine, a valve con trolling the admission of motive fluid there to, an actuator Which has an orbital path of movement, a lever that projects into said path and actuates the valve, means for varying the extent of the projection of said lever into said path for varying the period that the actuator and lever are in engagement, an eccentric for controlling said means, and means for turning the eccentric.

10. In combination, an engine, a valve controlling the admission of motive fluid thereto, an actuator for the valve, a lever interposed between the actuator and the valve through which motion is transmitted from the actuator to the valve, said lever having a cam face With Which the actuator engages, and means for varying the effective length of said cam face to vary the period during Which the actuator acts on the lever.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 24th day 01": March, 1913.

HENRY L. DOERING.

Witnesses:

HERMANN LENY, L. V. S'roEL'rzLEN.

lUopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, I). G. 

